Delivering emergency medical aid
A young girl with an MSF nurse in a therapeutic feeding centre, south Sudan, 2007.
Photo by Mikkel Dalum/MSF
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international humanitarian aid organisation that provides emergency medical assistance to populations in danger in more than 60 countries.
MSF provides essential healthcare during and after conflict, treats people affected by epidemic diseases, helps people in the aftermath of natural disasters and offers medical care to those excluded from healthcare.
In countries where health facilities are insufficient or even non-existent, MSF collaborates with authorities such as the Ministry of Health to provide assistance. MSF rehabilitates hospitals and clinics, runs vaccination programmes, performs surgery, operates feeding centres for malnourished children, provides psychological support and runs water and sanitation projects. MSF also works in remote health care centres and slum areas and provides training to local personnel.
MSF has been setting up emergency medical aid missions around the world since 1971.
Bearing witness
In carrying out humanitarian assistance, MSF seeks also to raise awareness of crisis situations; MSF acts as a witness and will speak out, either in private or in public about the plight of populations in danger for whom MSF works. In doing so, MSF sets out to alleviate human suffering, to protect life and health and to restore respect for human beings and their fundamental human rights.